January 21, 2025
Members present: Mark Fiorentino, Mark Neumann, Kelly Rome (via Zoom), Frederick Moffa, Monica Logan, Cheri P. Burke, Donna Nolan, Heather Lombardo, Liz Barlow, Karen Richmond-Godard, Michael B. Guarco, Jr., Jenny P. Emery, Kevin F. Hobson, William J. Kennedy.
Also present: Scott A. Nolan, Kimi Cheng, Kirk A. Severance, Amber Wyzik (via Zoom), Sandy Yost (via Zoom), Jon Lambert, Abigail Kenyon (via Zoom), Scott Sansom, Krista Shaffer, Zainab Zafar.
Review of Plus-One Budget – BOS
Mark Fiorentino explained that the town works within a budget process that includes a call for a “Plus-One Budget” and that this budget requires that the board of selectmen and the board of education meet with the board of finance to review expenditure needs and fund balance expectations for the upcoming fiscal year.
Fiorentino explained that the Plus-One budget is a high-level view of big-ticket items such as contractual obligations, anticipated benefits and insurance costs, utilities, and other mandated expenses and that both the board of selectmen and the board of education Plus-One Budgets are presented to the board of finance at the Three Board Meeting held in mid-January. Fiorentino noted that the management team developed a Plus-One Budget that outlines budget expectations for salary and wages for employees, preliminary cost estimates for employee benefits, and items that are contractual in nature or that are deemed important to maintain operations adequately.
The Plus-One Budget addresses items that are believed to be important to maintaining service levels and addressing issues identified in the strategic goals and objectives that include regular full-time salaries, medical benefits, retirement benefits, general government items, capital funding, lease funding, debt service bonds, and other items. Further discussion took place.
Review of the Plus-One Budget – BOE
Monica Logan gave a brief overview of the board of education budget. She noted that the proposed increase for the board of education was 5.67 percent, which includes a school resource officer, expansion of in-district special education programming, replacing tutors with a certified reading intervention teacher, additional grounds and maintaining personnel, unfunded mandates which include reading program, teacher evaluation plan, and athletics.
Logan explained that 72 percent of the budget supports salaries and benefits, which is an increase of 4.96 percent to meet the demand of the salary contract rates in FY25-26 noting there is a high demand for qualified teachers, and the U.S. inflation is up 2.7 percent, impacting the cost of supplies and services. Logan also explained that special education was up 1.82 percent going into more detail regarding the breakdown of students in the district, the B.E.A.R. transition academy costs analysis, and the small capital plan.
Board of Finance Comments
Mike Guarco noted that for the past decade, the budget has continued to improve, and that this opportunity gives the board of finance an early opportunity to get a sense of what is coming. Guarco explained the worksheet that was presented at last Fiscal Year’s budget time and noted that the current sheet shows a mill rate change. Guarco explained that the Grand List was due at the end of January and what the Town of Granby can expect for revenue.